College Hill Petition Will Focus On Secession Drive To Form New Town

June 09, 1990|by BILL WHITE, The Morning Call

Bill Givens has changed gears again in his effort to free College Hill from the shackles of the City of Easton.

Givens announced a petition drive last winter for a referendum in the November election to have College Hill, excluding Lafayette College, secede from Easton and become part of Forks Township. More recently he said he would probably hold off until next spring's primary election so he could tie the referendum to his expected mayoral or City Council campaign.

Givens says now that he has dropped Forks Township from his plan and will begin circulating a new petition next week for a referendum to make College Hill, including Lafayette, a separate entity, with the Bushkill Creek as its southern boundary. He's shooting for next spring's primary, but says he won't seek any Easton office.

"My first thought was to attach ourselves to a big, wealthy, growing township, but I've had a lot of indications for support on College Hill for College Hill to be independent, not aligned with Easton or Forks Township," Givens said yesterday. "I think I have a good shot at getting the voters to buy it."

Richard Benner, county voting registrar, said previously that Givens would need 258 signatures on his petition from Easton and 75 in Forks to get the question on the ballot, and a majority vote in both municipalities in the election to make the border change. Now Forks would be out of the picture.

Givens said the city has been unable to deal with College Hill's special problems, particularly storm water runoff and road problems. "I think those of us who live on College Hill do have the resources to correct those problems if we can succeed in unsaddling ourselves from a government down there that just seems incapable of running a municipality in a businesslike manner."

He said that as part of the independent College Hill, Lafayette will have to begin paying its "fair share," perhaps through a tax on student tuitions. "I don't think it's a matter of going over there (as the city has) with hat in hand and an obsequious, toadying, shuffling kind of approach with our hand out and say, `Will you please give us a few pennies?' Lafayette College has to do more to support their host community. They've got to be dealt with fairly and firmly."

Lafayette spokesman Bernard Carman declined comment on Givens' plans.

Givens said taxes would be lower for College Hill residents as an independent entity, and that although they would contract out for many of their services, they would probably have their own small police department.

Why would non-College Hill residents vote to give up the city's most affluent neighborhood? "I think we can show them we can save them money," Givens said. "True, they would be losing the taxes on College Hill, but on other hand they wouldn't have to provide services to College Hill, and those services have become staggering in terms of storm sewer and roads.

"Listen, there's no guarantee. I think you at least have to make the effort."